Growing up, Susquehannock senior Joey Romjue considered himself to be a typical older brother to Colby.

Meaning, he beat him up often.

Colby, a sophomore, disputes this claim.

"He tried," the younger and smaller Romjue said with a smile.

These days, the brothers still spend hours wrestling in their family's basement. Now those battles have more purpose than just simple horseplay.

The brothers are year-round wrestlers and the top competitors for Suquehannock High School. Colby competes at 145 and 152 pounds and is currently 9-2 in his second high school season. Meanwhile, the 170-pound Joey has been especially dominant this winter, posting a 12-0 record so far.

Both consider helping each other improve to be a major part of their job.

"You do the same stuff every day with him, so you know what he goes through," Colby said. "You root for him on the mat, you know exactly what he’s strong at and what he’s not. You know him better than anybody on the team. I think it helps having each other."

He might be younger, but the mohawk-sporting Colby is more outspoken. The sophomore openly admits he likes to be "at the center of everything."

On the other hand, Joey is more reserved yet still well-spoken. He has no problem letting Colby be the talker of the two.

In fact, he enjoys the dynamic they have.

"Just feed off of him and let him keep talking," Joey said. "A lot of our practices we talk back and forth. There will be some nights we argue, we’re mad at each other but that energy makes us push harder and get better.”

From a team standpoint, the two helped Susquehannock go 12-6 last season and 7-3 so far this winter. The Warriors are outside the 16-team playoff bracket in Class 3A, but are within striking distance.

Second-year Susquehannock head coach Aaron Trimpey said having two wrestlers as dedicated as the Romjues has been a major boost for the program.

"They’re the ones coming over the summer to work out, going to club wrestling and things like that," Trimpey said. "They’re always asking me, ‘What can we do here,’ and focusing on the little things. You ask them to do something and they do it. I'm blessed to have them."

Both brothers have big postseason goals this season after missing out on major hardware last year. But for Joey, it means more. This is, after all, the final chance of his high school career.

It's a chance he hopes once again isn't taken away by forces outside his control.

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Colby Romjue (left) and Joey Romjue are a combined 21-2 this season for Susquehannock High School. Both missed most of the postseason with illnesses last season.(Photo: Matt Allibone, York Daily Record)

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Joey couldn't stop sweating.

It was the night before last season's District 3 Class 3A individual wrestling tournament. He was motivated to win a high medal at 160 pounds after a narrow second-place finish at sectionals.

He also had mono.

Despite a 103-degree fever and being underweight from sweating all night, Romjue decided to try wrestling. He was pinned in his first match and decided to forfeit out of the consolations due to illness.

He's no longer angry about what happened. But that doesn't mean he's forgotten.

"It kind of stunk but it's more motivation than anything," Joey said. "Get (screwed) out of one season, I've got one more year to redeem myself."

The senior is ranked fifth in the district and 16th in the state at 170 pounds. But he's not paying attention to those numbers.

He knows what his goal is.

"State medal, first in the state," Joey said. "Rankings don’t mean anything to me because at the end of the day the best kid that shows up is going to win. Whoever they throw at me, I’m going toe to toe. Keep bringing them on. I'm ready."

Joey is certainly wrestling like someone capable of standing on the podium in March. Despite having yet to lose this season, he's adamant he still has plenty of things to improve.

His coach thinks his postseason success will be determined by how strong he can stay mentally.

"It all matters between his ears," Trimpey said. "If he keeps his head in and he wants it, that' all he's got to do."

Colby knows how his brother feels, having also bowed out of last season's District 3 tournament due to the flu — which he said multiple teammates were also dealing with. But while the younger Romjue has goals of his own, he might be more excited to watch his brother compete.

He wants to see Joey make a statement.

"He's been wrestling well, doing really good in the tournaments and the clubs," Colby said. "I think he'll do well."

While Joey and Colby are two years apart in age, they've always hung out together.

A lot of that bonding has come through wrestling. They started at the same time — when Joey was in third grade and Colby was in first — and compete throughout the year for Team Nauman Wrestling Club in Middletown.

Of course, that will change next year when Joey goes off to college. The senior said he's looking at schools in NCAA Division II and a few in Division I, but will wait until after the season to decide.

His graduation might be just as emotional for Trimpey as it is for the Romjues. The young coach — a 2009 Susquehannock grad — has been training the two since he was a student-teacher and they were in middle school. A third Romjue brother, Blake, will be in high school next year.

"Joey has been with me for the past six years and I've seen him grow so much," Trimpey said. "It's awesome to be with a kid so long and help him along the way because he has his goals set so high."

While Colby will miss being in the same lineup as his brother, he doesn't think he'll get too sad when Joey graduates. After all, he'll be getting his license next year.

"I think he's trying to stay local and I'll be driving so I can go visit him," Colby said. "So I'll still have a good (wrestling partner). It'll be weird but it won't be too bad."